


Trial By Fire

by shiny_starlight



Category: Merlin (BBC)
Genre: M/M, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-04-24
Updated: 2010-04-24
Packaged: 2017-10-09 03:08:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,105
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/82363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shiny_starlight/pseuds/shiny_starlight
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>On return from a diplomatic mission to Mercia, Merlin is outed as a sorcerer by a man determined on revenge.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Trial By Fire

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted in on November 6th, 2009.
> 
> Written for thisissirius's [Arthur/Merlin Magical Reveal Meme](http://thisissirius.livejournal.com/482675.html) on Livejournal. Written from the delicious Sir Leon's POV, cos there isn't enough leon fic in the world.

It had been a good few days. The late evening sun shone down through the trees as they rode through the forest, leisurely making their way home. Leon rode just slightly behind his prince and Merlin, returning to Camelot from a diplomatic visit to Mercia. It had been a courtesy, a royal visit to smooth the feathers ruffled by the King's abrupt cancellation of Bayard's visit after the 'Catriona Situation' as Prince Arthur now referred to it. Merlin liked to call it the 'Ha ha, Your Magic Hating Father Married A Troll' situation, but then, there was a reason that Arthur was the diplomat of the two, and not his manservant.

Merlin was currently grumbling as he rode next to the Prince, complaining about the mud the horses were kicking up due to heavy rains the night before, and how much cleaning he would have to do when they returned. Prince Arthur exchanged a grin with Leon over Merlin's head, and Leon had to hide his laughter as Merlin predicted increasingly dramatic and drastic situations.

"And what happens I don't get them cleaned properly, and your boots slip and you fall down the stairs and break your neck?" he all but wailed. "The King would have my head!" When he had first observed the interactions between prince and manservant, Leon had been shocked at the complete irreverence in the young servant. But the Prince's amusement and tolerance of the situation had surprised him more. The two were unnaturally close, friends despite both their stations.

Possibly even more, if the looks Leon had seen them exchanging the night before were any indication.

"You mean you wouldn't die of grief yourself?" the prince asked, highly amused as Merlin continued his tirade.

"Well..."

The no doubt cutting comeback Merlin was about to make never appeared as the world suddenly exploded into light. Leon's horse reared on his hind legs and, no matter how hard he tried, he could not stay seated. He fell from the saddle, landing hard on his side and knocking the wind out of his lungs. He gasped and his head rang from where it had struck the ground, but he struggled to his feet despite the pain. As he stood, he noticed that he wasn't the only one that had been fallen. Even the Prince was struggling to his feet. Their horses were neighing in fear and all cantered several hundred yards down the road, away from the scene before they settled and stay there, milling around and looking nervous. Leon stepped forward, ears ringing as he and the other knights made their way to their leader.

Merlin had also fallen, but he was not looking at them. He was crouched in the dirt, staring at the figure that had appeared in the road. The man wore a dark green cloak, and held a staff. Lightning crackled between his fingertips, and a cruel smile graced his lips as he pulled back his hood.

"Sorcerer," the prince spat, unsheathing his sword.

"Arthur Pendragon," the sorcerer intoned, not even glancing their way. For some reason, his eyes were fixed on Merlin. "I have no wish to harm you. You are safe from me this night."

"Could have fooled me," the Prince snorted, hefting his sword higher. "What with all bright lights and the explosions."

"I needed to... stun him," the stranger said, indicating to Merlin. "Before he could harm me."

"Merlin?" The Prince asked incredulous. "The only person he's a danger to his himself."

"So naive," the stranger mocked as Merlin got to his feet. "You really don't know, do you?"

"If he knew, I would have to leave Camelot and I then couldn't protect him from people like you," Merlin finally broke his silence.

"And how many people have you killed in 'protecting' your precious prince?" the sorcerer spat. "Ten? Twenty? Or have they all become a blur to you by now?"

"I..." Merlin blanched and even from here he stood, he could see Merlin's face lose all colour. Beside Leon, the Prince was looking on in confusion.

"Merlin, what is he..."

"You killed my sister," the man said, anguish clear in his voice. "Bethany was a powerful witch, well trained in the magical arts, and you killed her as if she were nothing."

"Bethany?" Merlin asked. "The serving girl? She was trying to poison Arthur!"

"It was her duty to her kind to see the line of the Pendragon's end. She chose that task, and she would have succeeded if she had not been betrayed and murdered by one of her own kind."

As he spoke, he threw out a hand and lightning arched towards Merlin. The Prince started forward but before he got more than two steps, the lightning reach Merlin. Instead of killing him where his stood, it... flowed off him. The lightening raced around him in circles until the energy spent itself and disappeared into the air as if it had never been there at all. Leon was sure he wasn't the only one gaping at the sight of Merlin; clumsy, foolish Merlin, standing there, a calm expression on his face and his eyes glowing gold.

"I'm sorry Arthur," he said, looking directly at the Prince. "I wanted to tell you, but I would have had to leave and..."

"How touching, Emrys," the sorcerer sneered. "Loyalty to the son of a butcher."

"Arthur is nothing like his father," Merlin insisted.

"So you think," the stranger countered. "We shall see." He turned to the Prince. "Prince Arthur, you have my word that you and you men may leave unmolested, if you leave the sorcerer to me." He indicated to where Merlin stood, eyes locked on the Prince. "He betrayed you," he continued. "He used magic in your father's court, lying to you all this time. Let me spare you the expense of the executioner. If you leave now, and leave him here with me, you shall live. Do not, and you shall all perish."

"You will not harm them," Merlin came to stand between them and the sorcerer. "I will not let you."

"They will not be harmed if they leave you," the stranger reminded him. "I told him he was safe from me this night and I am a man of my word."

"And what about tomorrow night?" Merlin snapped back. "Your sister will still be dead and Arthur will still live. It will eat away at you. I cannot let you hurt him. He is too important."

"Merlin, what do you think you are doing?" the Prince hissed, jerking his servant closer to him in a rough move.

"Saving you're arse, you ungrateful prat. Now shut up and get out of here! I can handle him." As he said it, his eyes glowed golden and the prince took a step back from him. The anguish and betrayal on his face was obviously too much for Merlin to bear, and he turned away.

"Listen to Emrys," the sorcerer taunted. "Get out of here. Whatever the outcome, he is lost to you. Even if you would welcome him back to court, what of your knights? Their loyalty is to the King. They are honour bound to report this act of betrayal, this treasonous liar hiding under your protection."

Leon looked around at his fellow knights, who were flicking glances between Merlin, the Prince and Leon himself. He would have liked to have known just how he got to be appointed spokesperson, but he took a breath before addressing the prince.

"Sire," he began, and Prince Arthur turned to look at him. "We are yours to command. If you tell us that we saw nothing happening in these woods, then we saw nothing."

Arthur looked surprised by this statement, but relaxed once he heard the murmurs of assent from the other knights.

"Enough!" the sorcerer bellowed, causing the ground to shake and the leaves to tremble on the branches. "Leave here, or you will all die," he threatened.

"I do not leave my people behind," the prince retorted. "No matter how much I'm going to beat the hell out of them later for lying to me to over a year and a half." That last bit was directed at Merlin, whose lips twitched into a smile.

"You can try," he smirked, and this seemed to enrage the sorcerer even more. He flung out a hand and Merlin was suddenly lifted off his feet and flung to the side. He crashed into a tree and sat there, dazed.

"Forward!" the Prince yelled and, as one, the knights moved forward. But they never reached their destination as they felt themselves flung back and felt their weapons torn from their grasp as they flew through the air. Leon staggered to his feet once more, just in time to see the sorcerer conjure a huge ball of flame with a few shouted, guttural words and hurl it at the crouched prince. Leon heard an anguished 'NO!' coming from his left and saw a blur of movement before the ball of fire engulfed the prince.

"Sire!" Leon shouted in desperation, unwilling to believe that he had just witnessed the death of Camelot's heir, the future hope for the kingdom. It could not be. The sorcerer's chilling laugh rang through the forest, and Leon and Sir Gareth ran for him, but they were gain thrown aside as simply as children's dolls.

Eventually, the ball of fire faded but, instead of revealing a blackened spot on the ground, it revealed two figures.

Prince Arthur was crouched on the ground, hands over his head in a feeble, but automatic, response to protect his head. Merlin was bent over him, body protecting Arthur, and a shimmering blue shield of some sorts protected them both from the flames. Leon didn't know how Merlin had managed to move so quickly to protect the Prince, but he thanked every deity he had ever heard of that he had done so.

"Merlin...?"

Leon had never heard the prince sound so weak, or so unsure. Merlin pulled back and smiled down at his prince, and even Leon caught his breath at the love and devotion on his face when he looked at the Prince.

"It will be alright," Merlin said as he straightened his spine and turned to face the sorcerer, who, for the first time since his appearance, was exhibiting a small amount of fear. He raised his staff and started to chant, but Merlin held up a hand and the staff was wrenched from the strangers grip without Merlin even uttering a word.

"You should not have tried to kill Arthur," he said and the sorcerer took a step back. Again, he tried to speak the words of a spell, but Merlin raised a hand. There was a whistling sound as all the knight's swords picked themselves up from where they had been thrown and flew through the air at alarming speed. Leon winced at the sound of slicing flesh as six swords pierced the sorcerer's body and he collapsed onto the ground.

For a moment, there was complete silence in the forest.

No birds or animals made their presence known, and every human on the road held their breathes in awe and a little bit of fear.

After a few seconds of this silence, Merlin turned, his eyes once again back to their normal blue.

"Arthur..." he began but the prince cut him off.

"We will discuss this later," he said, brushing past him to retrieve his sword. Merlin looked crushed and Leon sent him a reassuring smile.

They buried the sorcerer's body a bit away from the road into the forest and when they returned, the prince was standing next to his horse, fiddling with the straps of his saddle. Merlin was standing next to his own horse, a defeated look on his face. Leon guessed he'd been trying to explain things to the prince, and hadn't gotten very far.

"There's one thing I don't understand," Arthur said to Merlin, and the young warlock slumped miserably against his own steed.

"What's that," he asked, not looking at the Prince.

"If you are, as you claim, a powerful sorcerer who has been moving objects since before you could crawl, then how come my quarters are always such a mess?"

Merlin looked up at the prince as he swung up into his saddle, a suspicious look on his face.

"And how is it that my dinner is never piping hot when you bring it to the kitchen, or my bathwater for that matter. Or how about..."

 

Merlin's answering grin was as blinding as the sun.


End file.
